1 Samuel 24:2

2 Then Saul took three thousand chosen men out of all Israel, and went to look for David and his men in the direction of the Rocks of the Wild Goats.

1 Samuel 24:2 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 24:2

Then Saul took three thousand chosen men out of all Israel,
&c.] Out of his army, with which he had been pursuing the Philistines:

and went to seek David, and his men, upon the rocks of the wild goats;
which were in the wilderness of Engedi; those rocks were exceeding high and terrible to look at, full of precipices, and so prominent, that to travellers they seemed as if they would fall into the adjacent valleys, that it even struck terror into them to look at them ^F24; called the rocks of wild goats, because these creatures, called from hence "rupicaprae", or rock goats, see ( Job 39:1 ) ; delighted to be there; and are, as Pliny ^F25 says, of such prodigious swiftness, that they will leap from mountain to mountain, and back again at pleasure; these mountains David and his men chose for safety, and the height and craggedness of them did not deter Saul and his men from seeking him there.

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FOOTNOTES:

F24 Adrichom Theatrum Terrae Sanct. p. 47. & Brocard. in ib.
F25 Nat. Hist. l. 8. c. 53.

1 Samuel 24:2 In-Context

1 When Saul returned from following the Philistines, he was told, "David is in the wilderness of En-gedi."

2 Then Saul took three thousand chosen men out of all Israel, and went to look for David and his men in the direction of the Rocks of the Wild Goats.

3 He came to the sheepfolds beside the road, where there was a cave; and Saul went in to relieve himself. Now David and his men were sitting in the innermost parts of the cave.

4 The men of David said to him, "Here is the day of which the Lord said to you, "I will give your enemy into your hand, and you shall do to him as it seems good to you.' " Then David went and stealthily cut off a corner of Saul's cloak.

5 Afterward David was stricken to the heart because he had cut off a corner of Saul's cloak.